[MAIPC] Fwd: MAIPC Vol 59, Issue 32, Ailanthus

[Kathryn Peterson- Lambert]

Dear Friends, You may have already received this but I am sending it out to everyone that is interested in Ailanthus happenings.   Regards,

 Kathryn Peterson-Lambert
-----Original Message-----
From: rwalker <rwalker at alum.mit.edu>
To: Roderick Walker <rodswalker at gmail.com>
Sent: Tue, Sep 20, 2016 5:19 pm
Subject: Great opportunity to help with Ailanthus

To landowners in Virginia's Piedmont and Mountain Region, 

The Blue Ridge PRISM [Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management]
has recently been made aware of an exciting experiment on biocontrol methods
for Ailanthus. The success of the experiment depends on landowner
participation. Below is more information about the experiment. If you are a
landowner interested in providing a site for their work, please contact
Rachel Brooks, rbrooks at vt.edu.

About the Experiment:
Rachel Brooks, Ph.D student and Interfaces for Global Change
<http://www.globalchange.vt.edu/igc/>  fellow at Virginia Tech is currently
"designing a regional experiment looking at how effective the two
Verticillium wilt fungi are in managing Ailanthus". She is looking for
landowners that are interested in participating in the experiment that have
property with large, healthy, unmanaged populations of Ailanthus. The
ultimate goal of this project is to have a product ready for use by
landowners in the future. These fungi are already in the wild in Virginia
and seem to have minimal impact on other plants, but they move slowly
through mechanisms not well understood.  If these researchers can find a way
to readily reproduce the fungi and use it to infect healthy Ailanthus trees,
we may all have a much easier answer to this problem than what we are doing
today.  When these fungi kill an Ailanthus tree, they generally also kill
the whole copse through root connections.
 
Please note: Clusters of stands are preferred and there is no guarantee that
any stand will have a fungus applied to it.

Criteria for Ailanthus stands:
*	Stands where the Tree of Heaven makes up the majority of the
overstory
*	Stands that are at least 1/4 acre in size (roughly 100ft x 100ft)
*	Stands without any symptoms of decline nearby. Typical symptoms
include loss of foliage, numerous dead branches or dead trees, and vascular
discoloration (see the picture below)
*	Stands that are relatively close together (I am hoping to be as
efficient as possible with driving times)
*	Stands both in the Virginia mountains and the piedmont as well as in
PA and OH
*	Stands that are not along right-of-ways or other locations where
dead trees may cause a hazard

Timing of the study:
This study would involve the assessment of the stands this fall, the
application of one or more of the fungi in the spring, and then monthly
monitoring of the sites throughout the growing season.

About the Blue Ridge PRISM:
The Blue Ridge PRISM's mission is to reduce the impact of nonnative invasive
species in our ten county region. In support of our mission, we provide
resources and education for landowners. We see this Ailanthus biocontrol
experiment as an excellent opportunity to assist in the development of
biocontrols for nonnative invasive species and consistent with our desire to
connect landowners with the latest opportunities and resources. 

If you have stands of Ailanthus that meet the criteria listed and want to
participate in the research, contact Rachel and see if she would like to
visit your property.
 
Please feel free to pass this along to other folks who may be interested.

Best Regards,

Rod Walker
Blue Ridge PRISM - A Cooperative Weed Management Area for Virginia
3200 Middle Mountain Road
Crozet, Virginia 22932
Blueridgeprism.org
434 823-2742

 

 



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